CVE-2026-86205: H3 open redirect via protocol-relative path in redirectBack()

CVE-2026-86205 · Severity: medium · CVSS 5.4 · Published 2026-09-06

H3 is a popular HTTP framework used to build web applications and APIs. The redirectBack() function, which safely redirects users back to their referrer after form submission, contains a flaw that allows attackers to redirect users to external phishing sites by crafting malicious URLs. This can lead to credential theft and compromise of user accounts through phishing attacks.

Technologies: h3 (npm). Vendors: npm.

Quick answers

Is CVE-2026-86205 exploited in the wild?
No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-86205 being exploited in the wild.
How severe is CVE-2026-86205?
Medium severity, with a CVSS score of 5.4, published 6 September 2026.
Which products and versions are affected?
h3 (npm) SEMVER:introduced=2.0.1-rc.17,fixed=2.0.1-rc.18.
Is there a fix for CVE-2026-86205?
Yes. h3 (npm): upgrade to 2.0.1-rc.18 or later. Junglewise finds every place you run it, drafts the upgrade and applies it once you approve.
How is CVE-2026-86205 attacked?
It is attacked over the network.
Am I affected by CVE-2026-86205?
Check whether you run h3 (npm) at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

How to fix

  • h3 (npm): upgrade to 2.0.1-rc.18 or later
    npm install h3@2.0.1-rc.18

Technical details

The vulnerability is an open redirect (CWE-601) in the redirectBack() utility function located in src/utils/response.ts. The function validates that a Referer header shares the same origin as the current request before using its pathname for the Location header. However, it fails to sanitize protocol-relative paths (starting with //). An attacker can craft a URL like http://target.com//evil.com/path that passes the origin check (since the origin is target.com) but extracts a pathname of //evil.com/path, which browsers interpret as a protocol-relative redirect to an external domain. The vulnerability requires user interaction (the user must follow an attacker-crafted link and then trigger a redirectBack() call), is network-accessible, and requires no authentication. A fix is available in version 2.0.1-rc.18 and later, which sanitizes the pathname to prevent protocol-relative paths.

Affected products

  • H3 H3 2.0.1-rc.17

Identifiers

  • CVE-2026-86205
  • GHSA-fp4x-ggrf-wmc6

Timeline

  • 2026-03-23: disclosed
  • 2026-03-23: patched: Fixed in version 2.0.1-rc.18

References

This page as Markdown. Free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 with a link back.